Impatiens plant named Comet

ABSTRACT

An impatiens plant named Comet, having large deep pink to red purple flower color, large number of leaves in a whorl, multiple flowering at a leaf axil, good keeping quality of flowers, extremely floriferous, long internodes on a compact plant, terminal shoot that is slow to elongate, irregular lateral branching from the leaf whorl, and by its adaptability to various environments of use.

The present invention relates to a new and distinctive cultivar of NewGuinea Impatiens plant, botanically known as Impatiens, and referred toby the cultivar name Comet.

Comet was developed by me in Ashtabula, Ohio, through controlledbreeding by crossing Corona, disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 5,184(seed parent)×Mikkelsen Seedling No. 82-MISC-1 (pollen parent). Asexualreproduction by terminal or stem cuttings taken in Ashtabula, Ohio, hasshown that the unique features of this new impatiens are stabilized andare reproduced true to type in successive propagations.

The following characteristics distinguish the new impatiens from bothits parent varieties and other cultivated impatiens of this type knownand used in the floriculture industry:

1. Larger, more vigorous growing plant than Solared, U.S. Plant Pat. No.5,131. Similar in growth habit to Quasar, Columbia and Dawn. Quasar andDawn are disclosed in my pending applications and Columbia is disclosedin U.S. Plant Pat. No. 5,126. Comet is more compact than Corona andGemini, the latter being disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 5,132.

2. Flower color is deep pink to red purple and a shade deeper thanCorona; color is more intense under winter conditions.

3. Flower size is larger than Columbia and Corona, similar in size toGemini, but smaller than Zenith, disclosed in a pending application.

4. Flowers have excellent keeping qualities and nestle in the foliage aswell as over the top, similar to Quasar and Pulsar, also disclosed in apending application.

5. Leaf color is similar to Gemini and Pulsar but shows more midribvariegation than either, and Comet has a smaller leaf than Gemini.

6. Plants and flowers have good low temperature tolerance, continuing togrow and bloom after two (2) nights of 2.2° C. when planted outside inearly May.

7. The new cultivar is self-branching, a vigorous grower and a compactmound in form with vigorous stems, all of which make it ideal for pots,hanging baskets and bedding plant use.

8. Flowering begins earlier than Corona and it has the multipleflowering habit per leaf axil that Pulsar and Quasar have. As leafnumber increases in the whorl so does the flowering.

9. An excellent cultivar for further hybridization work for the multipleflowering characteristic on a compact plant for use as a pot plant orborder plant.

10. The terminal shoot of branch does not elongate as fast as other NewGuinea cultivars, as flowering from the node below the terminal may bewell advanced before elongation occurs. Lateral branching is also uniqueas a leaf whorl may lateral branch before flower buds open or not untilflowers have dropped from a leaf axil, which results in a compact plantwith long internodes.

The accompanying colored photograph taken in March 1984 illustrates theoverall appearance in perspective view of Comet, and showing the colorsas true as it is reasonably possible to obtain in a colored reproductionof this type.

The following is a detailed description of my new impatiens cultivarbased on plants produced under commercial practices in Ashtabula, Ohio,grown in 5.5" green plastic pots during the winter of 1983-1984, anddescribes colors under reduced sunlight and early floriferous floweringin an adverse environment. Color references are made to The RoyalHorticultural Society Colour Chart except where general terms ofordinary dictionary significance are used.

Parentage: Corona×Mikkelsen Seedling No. 82-MISC-1.

Propagation:

(A) Type cutting.--Stem 15 mm long will develop 4 to 5 cm long in 18 to21 days.

(B) Time to root.--8 to 10 days at 23° C. summer, 10 to 12 days at 20°C. winter.

(C) Rooting habit.--Large mass of fiberous roots from the stem.

Plant description:

(A) Form.--Symmetrically mounded, compact, flowering herb.

(B) Habit of growth.--Vigorous, self-branching, compact mounded,continuous flowering, light red stems.

(C) Foliage description.--Broad dark green foliage with purpling atedges and top, heavy variegation around the midrib. Veins are red incolor. (1) Size: 7.5 to 8.5 cm long×3.0 to 3.25 cm wide. (2) Shape:Lanceolate to ovate with acuminate apex and acute base. (3) Texture:Rugose upper side, glabrous under side. (4) Margin: Serrated, finelyciliated. (5) Color: Young foliage, top side 146A, under side 183C.Mature foliage, top side 139A, under side 183A. (6) Venation: Pinnatewith red midrib.

Flowering description:

(A) Flowering habits.--Flowers continuously from leaf whorl in asemi-progressively, semi-orderly manner (number of flowers vary from 1to 3 per leaf axil); 5 to 7 days are required from buds showing color tobloom, and flowers last 2 to 3 weeks.

(B) Natural flowering season.--Indeterminant and continuous. Quantity offlowers increase with increasing levels of light intensity and duration.

(C) Flower buds.--Ellipsoidal, flowers perfect, reddish spur 3.75 to 4.0cm long on mature bud with throat behind ovary and originating from themajor sepal.

(D) Flowers borne.--On individual short pedicels from whorls of 10 ormore leaves (17 leaves maximum counted in a whorl), increasing in numberas plant matures, but not consistent on each branch; floweringsemi-progressively around the whorl as leaves and buds develop (againinconsistent and ranged from 1 to 3 flowers per leaf axil). Flowers arefrom above to inside the leaf canopy.

(E) Quantity of flowers.--Very floriferous; can have 2 whorls on a stemblooming at the same time; flowering continuous so that tight buds tomature blooms are visible at the same time in large numbers.

(F) Petals.--(1) Shape: Heart shaped, top petal dominant, 4 othersoverlap and are symmetrical. (2) Color: top side in winter when opening78B, fading to 77C-D; under side 77B fading to 77C; top petal has largeoblong red area around the center ridge on the under side. (3) Number ofpetals: Five (5) in number. (4) Size of flowers: 6.0 to 7.0 cm.

(G) Reproductive organs.--(1) Stamens: five (5) in number. (a) Anthershape: Hooded, 67A. (b) Pollen color: Cream. (2) Pistels (a) Stigmashape: 5, segmented column, reddish in color. (b) Style color: Clear.(c) Ovaries: Five (5) in number, celled, 4 mm until fertilized, reddishgreen in color.

Disease resistance: No significant disease or insect problems have beenseen to date.

Other important characteristics of new cultivar: 1. Number of leaves ina leaf whorl (10 or more). 2. Multiple flowering from leaf axil. 3.Terminal shoot does not elongate until flowering is well underway on thenode below. 4. Long internodes on a compact plant. 5. Irregular lateralbranching from leaf whorl; frequently there are lateral branches whenflower buds in leaf axil, and lateral branches after flower buds dropfrom leaf axil.

I claim:
 1. A new and distinct cultivar of New Guinea Impatiens plantnamed Comet, as described and illustrated, and particularlycharacterized by its large deep pink to red purple flower color, largenumber of leaves in a whorl, multiple flowering at a leaf axil, goodkeeping quality of flowers, extremely floriferous, long internodes on acompact plant, terminal shoot that is slow to elongate, irregularlateral branching from the leaf whorl, and by its adaptability tovarious environments of use.